A Few Tips for the Starting-to-Get-Darker Commute

With Daylight Savings Time this past weekend, it has started to get dark much earlier. Which means more and more kids are heading home from school (and us adults heading home from work) in a little less light. Some people drive themselves to and from school, or snag a ride with parents or carpool, a good number still take the school bus or metro bus to get from here to there and back again. The fact that schools are in session and it's a little darker both morning and evening makes this a great time to review bus safety. While these tips were originally designed for school buses, I think the general safety tips can apply to any of us catching a bus:

On the Way to the Bus:

- Be alert! Pay attention to the traffic patterns around your bus stop.

- Get there a few minutes early.

- Always walk facing the traffic so they can see you coming, and you can see them.

At the Bus Stop:

- Stand back from the curb. Be sure to give the bus plenty of clearance.

- Try to enter and exit the bus in an orderly fashion - don't push or crowd.

- Use the hand rails and steps when entering and exiting the bus.

- Watch for the bus driver's signals when crossing in front of the bus.

While Riding the Bus:

- As they say in amusement parks, keep your hands, arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times.

- Use common courtesy - don't play your music too loudly, have that high-volume conversation on your mobile phone or in person. Good manners matter on public transit too!

And if you're the one driving the car around the bus? Please be careful. It's hard to assume what pedestrians will do, so all drivers need to exercise a bit of caution as we adjust to darker evenings.

A Different Sort of Thanskgiving

Sometimes on this blog I offer safety tips, talk about local events or things that happened in history, but today I want to talk about something a little bit more personal. I'm down in Phoenix for a few weeks working remotely and the community that Sandy and I have our home in here has a few different volunteer opportunities. Last night, they needed help at a downtown Phoenix rescue mission.

Eight of us from the neighborhood volunteered help with and serve dinner to the clients of this shelter. The work itself wasn't too difficult. I was the "Roll Guy", tasked with giving each diner a dinner roll or a biscuit (it was tough, but someone had to do it). While we were on the way there one of the other volunteers remarked that the diners at this soup kitchen are all very polite. Some of them made eye contact and responded with a genuine "thank you" for the roll. Others remained silent and still others, if they didn't want a rolls, just walked by my station in the food line. One man who didn't have any teeth asked if they were soft, otherwise he couldn't eat one.

As the dinner went on, I was perplexed as to the proper response to their "thank yous". How does one make polite conversation, after all it was just a roll? "Have a good evening" didn't seem appropriate as for all I knew that could mean a night sleeping on a bench and I was heading home to a house, a TV and a bed. Though the evenings in Phoenix are still mild, compared to the blessings I have that response seemed almost cruel. After a while, I settled on "You're welcome". Pretty dull.

We served for about an hour and a half, and then a bit of cleanup. When all was said and done, it was about three and a half hours there and back. It feels good to, in a very small way, make a difference in a hundred or so folks' day. It made me count my blessing and also realize that each and every one of those guys (there were only a handful of women) have a story to tell. How did they get there? Was it drugs, alcohol, mental illness or a bad economy and a string of down luck? Regardless of the way, I know each of them needed to be treated with dignity and respect. For through some cruel trick of fate, they are where they are and I am where I am. Worlds apart in daily experiences and comforts.

In a day, we have 24 hours, and of that we spend about 8 working and 8 sleeping, meaning we have 8 hours left to do what we please. It is great to be able to use a small portion of that to help others. If everyone could give 4 hours per month, just think what could be accomplished in our town and in our country.

Thanksgiving is just three weeks off, we all need to be thankful, but the second part of that word is "giving"...

A Bit of Election History!

Election season is in full swing this time of year, and despite the fact that most of the races are at the local or state level there is still a bit of buzz. Commercials, road signs and smiling candidates are waving from the sides of roads and campaigning for local initiatives. For residents of the 50 states, the ability to vote in these elections, and equally important the Presidential election, is a right that is a given. But for one part of the country, having a say in the country's next leader wasn't always an option. Oddly enough, it is the same part of the country that is home to the White House, Capitol building and all those Smithsonians.

In 1961, the 23rd Amendment to the Constitution was passed, allowing residents of the District of Columbia to vote for President. Those living there cast their ballots for the first time in 1964 (Lyndon Johnson vs. Barry Goldwater) giving their three electoral votes to the candidate of their choosing. The only elections that D.C. residents were eligible to vote in prior to that were for party officials and delegates to the Democratic and Republican national conventions.

Since those of us in Washington (the state) have been able to vote in elections of any kind for more than 47 years, this could serve as a timely reminder that our Election Day is just around the corner - November 8th. Look for ballot drop-off boxes in your local area or be sure to postmark your ballot by Election Day!

It's Aviation History Month!

The month of November is usually filled with turkey, football and a countdown of shopping days until the official holiday season. But November is also Aviation History Month, and for those of us in the Puget Sound area, there is a fleet of airplanes very near and dear to our collective hearts. Founded in Seattle, Boeing is a part of the culture in these parts (despite their departures to other parts of the country) and there used to be a joke that everyone around here knew someone who worked for Boeing.

Being in a region of aviation greatness (did anyone see the Dreamliner test flights? That's a big airplane) means that we have something unique in these parts - The Museum of Flight. Located near Boeing Field in South Seattle, the museum features some great pieces of aviation history. They have planes from decades past, old airline memorabilia and for those astronauts, an exhibit on spacecraft and artifacts.

As an added bonus, the holiday season is a time for out-of-town guests - and the Museum of Flight is a great place for visitors! You might even be able to work in that it's Aviation History Month (and the Wright Brothers flew for the first time in December). More information can be found at http://www.museumofflight.org.